Let’s get to it!

What you eat counts:

Compounds in carrots, celery, peppers and other veggies combats age-related inflammation in the brain. If it’s good enough for mice, it’s good enough for me.  “[Animal Sciences Professor Rodney] Johnson has spent nearly a decade studying the anti-inflammatory properties of nutrients and various bioactive plant compounds, including luteolin. Previous studies — by Johnson’s lab and others — have shown that luteolin has anti-inflammatory effects in the body. This is the first study to suggest, however, that luteolin improves cognitive health by acting directly on the microglial cells to reduce their production of inflammatory cytokines in the brain.” Mouse brain study

Why is it always the Swedes that do this sort of research? “For the first time, researchers in Sweden have found out what effect multiple, rather than just single, foods with anti-inflammatory effects have on healthy individuals. The results of a diet study show that bad cholesterol was reduced by 33 per cent, blood lipids by 14 per cent, blood pressure by 8 per cent and a risk marker for blood clots by 26 per cent. A marker of inflammation in the body was also greatly reduced, while memory and cognitive function were improved… The test diet was high in antioxidants, low-GI foods (i.e. slow release carbohydrates), omega fatty acids, wholegrain products, probiotics and viscous dietary fibre. Examples of foods eaten were oily fish, barley, soy protein, blueberries, almonds, cinnamon, vinegar and a certain type of wholegrain bread. Multiple Food Study . . .


Disease Outbreak of the Week: Listeria! I realize that this year has been Salmonella everywhere you look but Listeria has made a huge increase in appearances in food-borne related diseases and is something we need to become familiar with because it can be very deadly. This past week, a food processing plant in Texas was shut down by the Texas Department of Agriculture after10 cases of Listeria were reported (with 5 fatalities) – the bacteria was found in fresh celery that they were processing. The plant had been given the opportunity to do a voluntary shutdown; when they did not, the state stepped in and shut then down. “Listeria belongs to a group of bacteria with the potential to trigger miscarriages, stillbirths and premature births, as well as serious and sometimes life-threatening infections in very young children, elderly individuals and those with a weakened immune system.”

Listeria


For African American women, eating veggies is a matter of life and death. This study followed over 50,000 African American women over 12 years. I think we can say that this is a pretty good sample.
“Investigators from the Slone Epidemiology Center at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have reported that African American women who consume more vegetables are less likely to develop estrogen receptor-negative breast cancer than women with low vegetable intake. The study results, published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, were based on data from the Black Women’s Health Study (BWHS), a large follow-up study of 59,000 African American women from across the U.S. conducted by investigators at the Slone Epidemiology Center since 1995.” African American Women, Veggies and Breast Cancer


Follow up on the Illinois Subway Salmonella outbreak from this spring: Hey! Sysco!!

“In a final report on the outbreak, the Illinois Department of Public Health said it could not identify the exact source of the problem, but that the “most likely source” of the lettuce, tomatoes and olives linked to the illnesses was Lincoln-based Sysco Central Illinois Inc., which delivered produce to the affected restaurants. More than two dozen people were hospitalized in the outbreak, which included 109 confirmed cases and more than 90 probable or suspected cases. The report said 49 restaurants in 28 central and northern Illinois counties were connected to the outbreak.  More than 480 workers at the stores had to be tested; a dozen of them were found to be positive for the Hvittingfoss strain of Salmonella.”

Illinois Subway Salmonella Update

And in news so local that I can reach out and touch it: ZZZZZZZZ

That’s right. This week has been a complete snooze. We are in sort of a holding pattern at the moment. The turkeys are gaining about a pound a week at this point, with one of them, a hen, showing the rather clever survival strategy of NOT getting any bigger. I think she believes that if she stays small, we won’t send her ‘down the road’. Little does she know that we have a customer who likes to do the ‘deep fry’ thing and has specially requested the small turkeys.  We also took down the shades from the deck so that this side of the house (the south facing side) will get all the sun this fall, winter and spring.  And, I’m having one of those ‘feels like an ice pick in one of my eyes’ headaches, so the DH and our son have decided that what I need is a huge pot of soup and have unearthed every bit of frozen turkey and chicken stock we’ve got and have chopped up a big pile of veggies (see, I read my own copy too). I’m not sure if I should drink the soup or stick my head in it but I’ll think about that.